Request for Proposals: Federal Appropriations Lobbying Support

Organization: World Coffee Research
Issue Date: January 28, 2025
Responses Due By: February 12, 2025
Decision Date: No later than Feb 17, 2025

Summary of Need

World Coffee Research, a 501(c)(5) nonprofit organization, seeks a U.S.-based lobbying firm to provide lobbying and strategic advisory services related to U.S. federal appropriations on a monthly retainer basis not to exceed $10,000/ month.

Background

The global coffee industry created World Coffee Research in 2012 to invest in creating better coffee trees and facilitating access of small-scale farmers to improved coffee varieties. Coffee generates $343 billion in economic activity in the U.S. yet relies on coffee supplies that are predominantly grown by small-scale farmers in insecure, low-income areas of the world. The global coffee industry faces a $452 million annual investment gap in coffee innovation to ensure coffee’s future and the future of those that grow it worldwide. WCR began federal advocacy in 2021 to increase public sector investment – to match and complement industry investment – in coffee agricultural research and development. Given the enthusiastic engagement of our member companies, we have reached a point where we need additional support to manage and support annual appropriations requests to maintain wins and further our legislative goals. Learn more here.

Scope of Work

This scope is focused on support for federal appropriations related to international agricultural R&D and seed systems investments in agriculture and state and foreign operations. The firm selected will provide services including:

• Activating WCR member companies (approximately 20-30 per year) to submit annual appropriations requests each spring via formal portals and, where portals do not exist, letters to their Member(s) of Congress. WCR will provide the list, WCR member contact information, and draft request language. The firm will provide portal links, feedback on draft request language, Congressional contact information (ex. email addresses), and coordinate WCR members to submit requests, follow ups, and thank you notes.
• Limited advising WCR on federal appropriations timelines, dynamics, messaging, opportunities, and additional tactics to undertake to achieve WCR legislative goals.

Proposed Costs

WCR would like to retain a firm for appropriations support from March 1 – August 1 for no more than $10,000/month.

Qualifications

• Experience advising clients with 501(c)5 status on federal appropriations issues related to agriculture and state and foreign operations.
• Relationships with Members of Congress in leadership positions (both majority and minority) of appropriations committees and sub-committees related to agriculture and state and foreign operations.
• Demonstrable success in developing winning bipartisan strategies that have helped clients secure federal funding and legislative changes in similar fiscal and political climates to today’s.
• Familiarity with (and, ideally, relationships with) senior executive branch leaders involved in policy and programming state and foreign operations appropriations (ex. OMB, State Department’s Office of Foreign Assistance, and USAID Bureaus)

Response Format

Please submit the following information for your response. Responses should be no longer than 5 pages.

1. Organization details: Name, location, contact information, and basic information related to the business entity, capabilities, and any other details you feel it is important for us to know.
2. Qualifications: Please list and briefly describe three projects completed within the previous five years that are similar or related to providing the type of support requested in this RFP. Please include how they demonstrate the qualifications sought in this RFP and list concrete results achieved.
3. Fee proposal: Describe the cost for services, hourly rates (if applicable), and any anticipated expenses.
4. Team proposal: Provide a brief bio with qualifications for each team member proposed for this project.

Please submit your response in the form of a PDF document to advocacy@worldcoffeeresearch.org by 5 P.M. Central time on Feb 12, 2025.

We look forward to your response and potentially working with you to create the future of coffee!